1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a maintenance means for cleaning an ink jet recording head, and particularly to a maintenance means for cleaning an ink jet recording head which delivers ink droplets through nozzles provided in a board-shaped nozzle plate, and an ink jet recording apparatus having the same.
2. Description of the Background Art
There has been known an ink jet recording apparatus which selectively delivers ink droplets to a recording medium through a plurality of nozzles arranged in a nozzle plate.
In the ink jet recording apparatus, ink might remain around the nozzles after the delivery of the ink droplets. Drying/curing such remaining ink could lead to turning of the direction of ink delivery, clogging of the nozzles, etc. upon subsequent printing. Thus it becomes apt to produce a failure in ink delivery and a failure in print. Foreign particles like dirt of the recording medium, and dust in the air are adhered to the peripheries of the nozzles, thus leading to turning of the direction of ink delivery and clogging of the nozzles. Thus it becomes apt to produce a failure in ink delivery and a failure in print.
Therefore, there have heretofore been proposed various ink jet recording apparatuses which remove ink and foreign particles remaining around nozzles.
There is known, for example, a technology wherein a wipe member formed of an elastic body or the like is pressed against a nozzle plate and slid along the nozzle plate in this condition to thereby sweep foreign particles adhered to the nozzle plate.
In order to prevent degradation of sweeping capability due to the adhesion of the foreign particles removed from the nozzle plate by sweeping to the wipe member, there is also known, for example, a technology provided with a cleaning means for cleaning the wipe member in addition to the aforementioned technology.
However, the foreign particles adhered to the wipe member cannot be removed perfectly even in the case of execution of its cleaning. Therefore, the prior art is not capable of enhancing sweeping capability despite the fact that cleaning has been effected on the wipe member. Further, a failure in print might occur with the transfer of the foreign particles adhered to the wipe member to nozzle surfaces even after its cleaning. Such degradation of the sweeping capability remarkably appears as abrasion of the wipe member makes progress.
As a countermeasure against it, there has heretofore been known a maintenance means for cleaning an ink jet recording head, which makes a wipe member detachable and is capable of replacing a worn wipe member with another wipe member.
In such a maintenance means for cleaning the ink jet recording head, however, a problem also arises in that, for example, the work of replacing the wipe member with another is complex and the hands get dirty upon its replacement work.